Epic Q&A

[Brook Willard]

How often do you guys upgrade firmware? Do you ever do "beta" (I guess they are all beta, but beta's with no bugs that would affect shooting) upgrades or have you guys been trying to stick with the same firmware?

I won't be specific, but I will say that we have most certainly not bee on the same firmware for the whole movie.

 

[Peter Mosiman]

I won't be specific, but I will say that we have most certainly not bee on the same firmware for the whole movie.

Cool. Yeah, specifics don't matter to me, I was just curious what you guys were doing. Do you guys ask for certain things to be enabled and then you upgrade when it is available or?

 

[Steven Caesare]

Firstly, thanks for this excellent thread, Brook.

I have a general question regarding the overall use and functionality of the side handle.



...SNIP...

-Steve

Hmm... silence. I'm suprised the handle is not being discussed at all. Are there some NDA limitations?

-Steve

 

[Brook Willard]

Hmm... silence. I'm suprised the handle is not being discussed at all. Are there some NDA limitations?

-Steve

Heh, no NDA... You just asked a ten-part question man!

I've strayed away from using mine (not my chosen style of shooting) but others have much more time using theirs.

 

[Steven Caesare]

Hehe... it was a "If you have info on any of these" type of thing...



Thanks.

-Steve

 

[Brook Willard]

1. Does the record button work?
2. Can you currently assign any of the buttons to a function?
3. Do they default to anything?
4. Can you assign the scroll wheel to a function?
5. Is the navigation control currently enabled?
6. What info does the LCD screen give you and how is it laid out?
7. What's the overall feel of the controls?
8. Is there a good tactile feel of the half-depress on the record button?
9. Is the LCD screen backlit?
10. Anything else?

Thanks!

-Steve

Here goes.

1. Yes
2. Yes, you can assign the buttons.
3. I'm sure they do.
4. Not yet.
5. It functions the same as the scroll wheel on the REDmote right now... for menu selections.
6. Information about your project settings, sensitivity, etc. The stuff you would expect.
7. Feels like it should... solid.
8. Yes, it's great. The best one on the camera as of today.
9. Yes.

 

[Steven Caesare]

Thanks Brook...

I appreciate it. I'm hoping that it will be part of the fixed package and am interested inhow it feels/works, because in that scenario the rotary encoder and rocker will likely be quite useful for the electronic lense.

Looking forward to Spidey!

-sc

 

[Imran Farouk]

Please don't make this a contest...it's just a matter of opinion

Just a general question to all the owners,

would the EPIC be feasible as an on the go kind of DSLR replacement?

So pretty much pack it in the same bags as current DSLRs and just go out and shoot stuff, stills or motion?

I want to sort of replace the need to take out my 7D and just carry my EPIC all the time, keep a bunch of SSDs and transfer at the end of the day

 

[Greg M]

Just a general question to all the owners,

would the EPIC be feasible as an on the go kind of DSLR replacement?

So pretty much pack it in the same bags as current DSLRs and just go out and shoot stuff, stills or motion?

I want to sort of replace the need to take out my 7D and just carry my EPIC all the time, keep a bunch of SSDs and transfer at the end of the day

ABSOLUTELY! Once REDvolts ship, that's exactly what Epic is and much much more.

I shot this footage DSLR style with one lens, no matte box or follow focus the day the camera arrived:
http://vimeo.com/21092921

I am in love with this camera and the form factor.

 

[Peter Lyons Collister ASC]

I hope to use my EPIC to take stills on the set and on scouts.

However one point I will make is that my Nikon D3 and Canon 5D are $5000 bodies. I leave them around, sitting on camera carts or the dolly and let them get knocked around a bit.

My slightly more expensive Epic body? I might treat it a little better.

 

[Ketch Rossi]

I hope to use my EPIC to take stills on the set and on scouts.

However one point I will make is that my Nikon D3 and Canon 5D are $5000 bodies. I leave them around, sitting on camera carts or the dolly and let them get knocked around a bit.

My slightly more expensive Epic body? I might treat it a little better.

Like wise Peter, I do the same with my Canon 1Ds, and now it has become Joseph Hutson's (my accomplice) main Stills shooting camera

 

[Ketch Rossi]

Hmm... silence. I'm suprised the handle is not being discussed at all. Are there some NDA limitations?

-Steve

We have ours mounted on the camera 90$ of the time, unless configured on the ET ATOM 3D rig, it will be the most of
the times, I love the Side Handle Grip, and use all functions to navigate the menu as I do on the Redmote and or
on the Touchscreen, love it.

Fills like I am holding a medium format Hasselblad or Mamiya body

 

[Shawn Nelson]

Can the Epic brain do HD-SDI or HDMI at the same time as the EVF/LCD port?

Second, is the difference between the HDMI and HD-SDI the same as on the Red? That is that the HDMI has the menus and the HD-SDI is clean?

 

[Greg M]

HD-SDI and EVF + LCD at same time no problem....I havent tried HDMI

 

[Ketch Rossi]

I use the SmallHD P6 via the HD-SDI, but sure that can also go thru the HDMI, + EVF or Touch Screen LCD.

 

[Glenn Cogan]

my apologies if the following has already been answered, and please include a link if that's the case..but i was wondering what would be the essential acessories to get with the basic Epic camera body with my initial order?. I will be retiring our 5D Redrockmicro rig when we eventually get our Epic so we may be able to use their mattebox i am hoping.

 

[David Dennis]

Please don't make this a contest...it's just a matter of opinion

Just a general question to all the owners,

would the EPIC be feasible as an on the go kind of DSLR replacement?

So pretty much pack it in the same bags as current DSLRs and just go out and shoot stuff, stills or motion?

I want to sort of replace the need to take out my 7D and just carry my EPIC all the time, keep a bunch of SSDs and transfer at the end of the day

Like 99% of RedUsers, I have no access to an Epic, but I do wonder about the weight. I have a Nikon D300 right now, and it often feels like a millstone around my neck. The 7D weighs about 1.8 pounds, and the Epic is about 5. That's going to be a crushing burden for your neck if you hold it DSLR style.

RED's shoulder mount might solve this problem, but it's going to be very bulky. I would wonder what I could do with that if I was, say, sitting down to eat at a restaurant. It's perfectly easy to put a DSLR down on the table - an Epic with shoulder mount gear would take up the whole thing!

I'd definitely be curious to hear how people with Epics are handling this problem, or planning to. It seems to be one of the few Epic drawbacks other than price. I'm not complaining about the weight since it's amazing how much complexity is built into that thing - but it would be great to see how people handle this in real life.

D

 

[Jason Sinclair]

Like 99% of RedUsers, I have no access to an Epic, but I do wonder about the weight. I have a Nikon D300 right now, and it often feels like a millstone around my neck. The 7D weighs about 1.8 pounds, and the Epic is about 5. That's going to be a crushing burden for your neck if you hold it DSLR style.

RED's shoulder mount might solve this problem, but it's going to be very bulky. I would wonder what I could do with that if I was, say, sitting down to eat at a restaurant. It's perfectly easy to put a DSLR down on the table - an Epic with shoulder mount gear would take up the whole thing!

I'd definitely be curious to hear how people with Epics are handling this problem, or planning to. It seems to be one of the few Epic drawbacks other than price. I'm not complaining about the weight since it's amazing how much complexity is built into that thing - but it would be great to see how people handle this in real life.

D

I imagine a shoulder style bag similar to laptop bag wearing. A lot more weight can be carried this way.

 

[G Lap]

Please don't make this a contest...it's just a matter of opinion

Just a general question to all the owners,

would the EPIC be feasible as an on the go kind of DSLR replacement?

So pretty much pack it in the same bags as current DSLRs and just go out and shoot stuff, stills or motion?

I want to sort of replace the need to take out my 7D and just carry my EPIC all the time, keep a bunch of SSDs and transfer at the end of the day

I obviously don't have an Epic M but I have handled one briefly......a seriously impressive piece of kit that put an all day smile on my face. However I would say that whilst the form factor is good and will be familiar to stills/DSLR shooters, the heft and weight shouldn't be underestimated.

It felt great, solid and dense almost as if carved from solid, but it's size, whilst small compared to other cine cameras, seemed more akin to a Hasselblad than a D3S or 1DMk1V. And it was heavy (mounted with a cine zoom at least) when compared to the latter too, if not in comparison to other cine cameras. This was the biggest surprise for me personally (coming from a stills background I swear I uttered an unintentional "good grief" when I first picked it up ).

I don't think this is a camera that I could simply sling over my shoulder DSLR style and be comfortable wandering around all day. If you need the motion capability fine, but I think a sturdy backpack and at least a good monopod (if not a tripod or shoulder mount) will be the order of the day.
Epic S will be similar in size and heft apparently, so it's probably the Scarlet that will come closest to being an all day carry round alternative to a DSLR, although that means using a 2/3rds sensor of course.

 

[Cüneyt Kaya]

what happens to all the epic`s from the big budget films when the shooting is finished?